Willamette Valley sparkling wine named world's best for 2024

Sparkling wine is flowing in the Willamette Valley. It's delicious. So good. In Blind Tastings, Rocco's 2013 RMS 10-Year Delayed Disgorgement Brut was the clear choice with 98 points from wine enthusiast, Northwest Wine Reviewer, Michael Alberti. And when we hit that wine, I can remember stopping and thinking, that's one of the best sparkling wines I've had Rocco's 13 RMS beat out competitors from around the world, including Champagne, France. I have a lot of friends in Champagne, and they love my wine. That's Roland Soles, who has been making sparkling wine in the Willamette Valley since the mid-1980s. This is the perfect region for making bubbles because it's so cool, close to that cold ocean out there. And to be named the world's number one wine by Wine Enthusiast, one of the most prestigious publications in the wine industry. I'm all in. It's exciting. His customers agree. First of all, congratulations to Oregon as a great place for growing wine. It's bright. It's got a good mouthfeel. A little bit of lemon curd. Beautiful brioche. That was, like, one of the best kept secrets. The big story here is the rise of sparkling wine in Oregon. Rocco's not the only winery to make this list, but three others in the Willamette Valley cracked the top 100. Including Cho, Corollary, and Domaine Serene, all for their sparkling wines. The Willamette Valley is the top new world region for growing sparkling wine grapes in the entire world. And Soles' wine is leading the pack. Every once in a while, the old hands come along, like Raul and Soles have been doing this for a very long time. And they want to remind you that the old hands know how to make great sparkling wines as well. And that certainly was the case with this one. It's sunshine in a glass. Libby Dowsett, KGW News. Yes, way to go, Rocco. And you know what, like, gosh, our grapes. I know. And just last week. You were wine tasting. I mean, I did go wine tasting. But Wine Spectator last week said Oregon, it was Druin Winery. Remember the sixth top Pinot in, like, the world? That was sixth top wine, actually. So you could say, as far as wine goes, Oregon is crushing it. Sorry, couldn't help it. But seriously, kudos to the wine industry in Oregon. It's really, really exciting, too.